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History

Dudley was born to a wealthy family, and grew up to be a spoiled playboy as an adult. One day while yachting, he chanced to encounter the undersea hero Aquaman and his wife, Mera, and was instantly smitten with her. Up until this point, Dudley was accustomed to getting anything he wanted by throwing money around, and upon learning that Mera was not interested in him or his money, he childishly decided that Mera's love for Aquaman must be based solely on his undersea prowess. This, in turn, led him to conclude that if he could beat Aquaman at his own game, he would win Mera's love.

Towards this end, Dudley hired a scientist named Dr. Hans Ludorff and told him to re-create Aquaman's powers in Dudley, only stronger. Ludorff tried to comply, but something in the process went wrong, and Dudley became a hulking monstrosity, with at least twice Aquaman's super-human strength and the ability to breathe underwater. Now dubbing himself Aquabeast, Dudley attacked Aquaman and kidnapped Mera.

Whether or not Aquaman could have defeated Dudley in his Aquabeast form remains a mystery, however, because Dudley and Mera were then attacked by Hammuri, an extra-terrestrial from an unspecified aquatic planet, who had come to Earth plotting global conquest. Hammuri and Dudley fought, and in the course of the battle, both fell into a tidal whirlpool from which neither one apparently was able to escape. Dudley has not been seen since and is presumed to have perished, as is Hammuri.

Powers and Abilities

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super-human

Notes

Although this character was originally introduced during DC's Earth-One era of publication, their existence following the events of the 1985–86 limited series Crisis on Infinite Earths remains intact. However, some elements of the character's Pre-Crisis history may have been altered or removed for Post-Crisis New Earth continuity, and should be considered apocryphal.

This character, team or organization, is or was primarily an enemy of Aquaman, or members of the Aquaman Family. This template will categorize articles that include it into the category "Aquaman Villains."